Last week, the legal challenge to Iowa’s new near-total abortion ban ended. On Thursday, the ACLU of Iowa filed a petition in Polk County District Court asking Judge Jeffrey Farrell to dismiss the lawsuit it filed in July 2023 on behalf of the Emma Goldman Clinic, Planned Parenthood of the Heartland (PPH) and its medical […]
Iowa News
Posted inCommunity/News
Gov. Reynolds rejects millions in aid for food-insecure Iowa families (again), instead asking feds to fund her own ‘monthly box’ program
On Thursday, Gov. Kim Reynolds announced she is again refusing to allow Iowans to participate in a USDA program that provides millions of dollars in direct assistance to families with children to help cover the increased cost of food during summer months when kids aren’t in school. “In Iowa, our focus is on the comprehensive […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Appeals court lets SF 496, Iowa’s infamous book ban and ‘don’t say gay’ law, go into effect
When Iowa students return to school later this month, they may notice books, including important works of literature, have disappeared from library shelves, and younger students will find certain topics can no longer be discussed in their classrooms. That’s because on Friday, a three-judge panel of the 8th Circuit Court of Appeals lifted the preliminary […]
Posted inCommunity/News
The world reacts to Iowa’s abortion ban, from Kamala Harris to local OB-GYNs: ‘Women will be harmed and die because of this law’
“Make no mistake: half of the state is less free today than they were yesterday because of Republicans in the legislature and Kim Reynolds,” Iowa House Minority Leader Jennifer Konfrst said on Monday. “There’s just no other way to look at it.” The Windsor Heights Democrat was speaking about the state’s near-total abortion ban, which […]
Posted inCommunity/News
DeSantis tells cheering Iowa Republicans ‘I hope and pray’ Biden is the Democratic Party nominee
Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis spoke to the Iowa Republican Party Wednesday on the terrace of an Italian-style villa in Milwaukee that overlooks Lake Michigan, possibly showing his interest in another bid for the presidency even as Republicans prepare to formally nominate Donald Trump as their presidential candidate for a third time. During his 10 […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa’s extreme abortion ban expected to go into effect Friday
Iowa’s near-total abortion ban is expected to go into effect on Friday, following the 4-3 Iowa Supreme Court decision on June 28 that overturned the temporary injunction halting the ban while the lawsuit filed by the Emma Goldman Clinic and Planned Parenthood North Central States is before the courts. The four-justice majority sent the case back […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa’s licensing boards close access to information on misconduct charges against health professionals
The state of Iowa says it will not necessarily disclose to the public the rationale for disciplinary charges against licensed professionals such as physicians, nurses, therapists and nursing home administrators. The determining factor appears to be whether the state’s licensing boards choose to include the allegations within the text of a final order in a […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa Food Systems Coalition sees future of state’s agriculture in food diversity, not ethanol and animal feed
A new plan for Iowa agriculture seeks to increase the state’s production of food rather than ethanol and animal feed, the Iowa Food System Coalition announced at a Monday press conference. The plan, known as Setting the Table for All Iowans, outlines the coalition’s policy goals which include producing more locally grown food, getting more […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Iowa Supreme Court upholds near-total abortion ban, creating ‘a constitutional rule that gives no weight to a woman’s autonomy over her body’
Six years ago, the Iowa Supreme Court found the state constitution guaranteed the right to an abortion. “Autonomy and dominion over one’s body go to the very heart of what it means to be free,” then-Chief Justice Mark Cady wrote in the 2018 decision striking down a medically unnecessary 72-hour waiting period for an abortion […]
Posted inCommunity/News
New report: Iowa drops below Wisconsin, Illinois and Nebraska in education rankings
Iowa scored relatively well in education rankings among the states, but with declining test scores and on-time high school graduation rates decreasing, the state has fallen from its highs of previous years, according to a new report from the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Sixty-seven percent of Iowa fourth-graders in 2022 were not proficient in reading, […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Appeals court hears arguments on injunction blocking Iowa school book law
Attorneys for the state of Iowa and civil liberties groups clashed in court Tuesday over an injunction blocking enforcement of a law that restricts school libraries from carrying books with material related to sex acts, sexuality and gender. The injunction was imposed by U.S. District Court Judge Stephen Locher in December 2023, days before enforcement […]
Posted inCommunity/News
Federal judge hears arguments in lawsuits challenging Iowa’s attempt to create its own system to deport immigrants
A federal judge in Des Moines heard arguments on Monday on the attempt by the Reynolds administration to appropriate the federal government’s power to create and enforce immigration laws. SF 2340 makes it a state crime for a person to be in Iowa if they have previously been denied entry into the U.S., or been […]
